In The Next Life
by JayPolar
Summary: Merlin's destiny is to always protect, be by his side, and, ultimately, bring magic back in Camelot. As fate would have it, he ends up as his manservant. However, with such a grand destiny comes at a cost. Danger wove its way in the heart of Camelot, but where they least expect it. Face to face, each of their action comes a cost. Is it worth dying for?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Merlin. It is owned by the BBC producers, writers, director, and others. This story is for entertainment. Any characters that are not from the show are either characters from the Arthurian legends (marked by *) or my own. Please do not plagiarize my story, thank you!

 **PLEASE READ AUTHOR'S NOTE!**

 **A/N:** Hello everyone! This will be a pretty long author's note, but it is rather important that I speak about this. I know that it has been a while since I last updated the story. I also know that this will be the second time that I started over writing the story. The reason why is because I hit a major writer's block and, in real life, I had also some problems that needed to be solved first. I'm doing much better! Hurrah! After I cleared my head, I have come up with a more sounding plot.

As such, I will not give up on finishing this story that's been gnawing its way out and I'm stubborn. I will say, the story has slightly changed, as seen with the summary, but do not fret! It still has a pretty similar outline as what I had previously – just with more purpose now and better starting point. Which brings me to an important point, the story will pretty much skew from the BBC version, though it has aspects of it. However, there might be moments from different seasons blended in. I won't know exactly when it will happen, so I advise you to **please watch the whole series** **before reading this story**. Unless, of course, you are fine with spoilers.

Anyways, I would like to thank every single person who has read (and re-read) my story, followed, liked, and left a review. Not sure if any of them will disappear or not, but I would just like to say thank you. They kept me going! Therefore, I will be **publishing all chapters** **that I have written so far** as a gift and sorry for being away for so long.

Without further-a-do, here is the re-vamped version of the story (and much longer chapters as well)!

 **Summary:**

Merlin's destiny is to always protect, be by his side, and, ultimately, bring magic back in Camelot. As fate would have it, he ends up as his manservant. However, with such a grand destiny comes at a cost. Danger wove its way in the heart of Camelot, but where they least expect it. Face to face, each of their action comes a cost. Is it worth dying for?

Features the Arthurian legend. [Adventure, hurt/comfort, & hints of comedy]

* * *

-Chapter 1-

Whispers could be heard between trees in the dense forest. It could not be heard by just anyone for even the magical creatures that roam about had failed to hear its secrets. However, a raven-haired boy, stumbling his way behind a man with golden locks turned his head to the side when he heard…

Arthur hissed the air. "Merlin, you idiot! Are you blind?"

"S-sorry," he mumbled as he tripped on the branch for the fifth time that morning. "I thought that I –"

"You!" the prince pointed at his face. He shook his head and marched on.

"Well, wait up!"

The two of them, along with a few other knights, had gone up early in the morning to satisfy their need to hunt for wild animals. Merlin still failed to fathom why people enjoyed killing animals, but at least Arthur, for all the idiotic choices that he makes, does not do it out of sport. Whatever Arthur captured – or, maybe, a better term right now would be _if_ they capture any – had a purpose. They are usually turned into food. If large enough, its fur could also be used during the winter.

As they stealthily maneuver their way around the trees and bushes of the dense forest, Merlin made sure to keep his ears open to catch what the sound was earlier. His stomach churned when he tried to recall what he had heard. Yet, for the life of him, he could not decipher the content. A thump on the forehead broke his thought. It was a branch. Arthur turned around and a smirk grew. After that incident, his focus slowly shifted to his surroundings to avoid any on coming _accidents_ , as Arthur liked to put it.

Thankfully, by the end, they were able to catch two wild rabbits. They triumphally – besides the still sulking Merlin – made their way back to the castle without a hitch. On the way there, the boy wondered what the noise was earlier.

Upon arrival at the upper citadel, Merlin carefully carried the two dead animals into the kitchen. One of the kitchen maids thanked him and said that it would be prepared for the prince right away. He nodded his head and made his way to Arthur's chamber. There, he found the prince to be lying down on his bed.

"I just cleaned those sheets!" Merlin called out with exasperation.

"And you can clean them again after you've polished my boots, cleaned my shirt and trousers," Arthur ordered. He got up from the bed and walked behind the changing screen. "Don't forget to also clean Sterling and his hooves by tomorrow afternoon."

"He's perfectly fine," he retorted whilst trying to dust off the dirt from the bed.

"If you must know, King Pellinore of Listenoise* and his son, Tor*, are coming over. I can't have my steed looking less than perfect in front of them, now can I?" Arthur peered out behind the screen with devious look. "And it's your job."

"And it's your job to be a perfect prince, but I think we all know you lack in _that_ area," Merlin pointed at his head. Arthur threw his shoe at him, which came with a loud whack against his head. He took it as a sign to continue his duty.

Once the bed looked seemingly much cleaner, he left the room twice to fetch a total of four buckets of heated water. Arthur sank in the tub of warm water. Seeing his shoulders eased, Merlin went back out to grab the prince's dinner. Along the way, he saw Gawain and another knight beside him strolling closer.

"Merlin!" Gawain waved his arm high in the air. When they were in front of each other, the knight could not resist putting his hand on the boy's shoulder. He swayed him a little, which resulted in Merlin chuckling.

"Evening to you too, Gawain and…"

"Dalon," the knight answered.

"Evening to you both," Merlin smiled. Gawain seemed to pay no mind to his greeting and started to tell tales about his meeting with a lovely woman in the tavern. Merlin simply smiled and let the drunken man ramble on. He turned his head to Dalon. "Let me guess, had too much to drink?

"Aye, 'am afraid so," he nodded and let out a sigh. "I was just makin' me way to do guard duty in the eastern tower, when Sir G'wain stumbled out of the tavern. Almost fell flat on the mud ground if I wasn't there."

"Thanks for that, Dalon. Would you mind taking him to Gaius? I need to the get the prince his supper," Merlin pleaded. Dalon seemed to understand his plea and accepted it. "Thank you!"

He shifted Gawain's arm around the knight, and they walked on. When Merlin returned from the kitchen with both his hands handling the tray full of food and wine, he heard a slight snore. He entered the chamber and noted that the noise was coming from Arthur. Perfect. He swatted the prince's head. The snore abruptly stopped, but the booming sound of his name filled the room. Merlin cupped both of his ears with his palm and rolled his eyes. He grabbed the towel hanging from the table beside the tub and gave it to Arthur, who still looked half a sleep.

When Arthur finished changing into much more comfortable attire, he gobbled his food and retired to his bed. Thankfully, he did not order any other duties to his manservant, who was equally as tired. Merlin quickly cleaned Arthur's boots and grabbed the tray by one hand and the other was occupied by Arthur's dirty clothes. He made his way to the to the kitchen to clean the dishes. Then, dropped the clothes in the basket full of other dirty clothes. He was about to go back in Arthur's chamber to toss the filthy water in the tub away, but it would cause too much noise. More importantly, he could not resist his bed calling for his name.

As he walked through the open hall of the castle, a sudden breeze flew in. He felt no chill but froze like an ice. He felt his heart throb in pain. Then, in a matter of seconds, he was losing his breath. He clasped his chest and began to stumble to the ground. Time seemed to slow down for a bit for he did not completely make a fool of himself by suddenly being in all fours. He finally managed to take a small breath in. Afterwards, his body started to remember how breathing worked and he trudged ever so slowing back to his chamber.

When he arrived, Gaius was not there. He reminded himself to ask the physician what could have caused the pain earlier. For now, he wondered in his chamber and saw that Gawain had already taken the whole bed. He lets out a sigh, but he knew that he should not wake up his friend who had a long day.

* * *

The following morning, Merlin hardly could forget what had happened that evening at the hallway. The literal feeling of breathlessness still etched in his body that he took in a few deep breathes of reassurance. Wonderful. His body was functioning correctly. He sat up from the floor and peered at the sleeping man occupying his bed, who still reeked a bit of mead. He got up and grabbed a fresh tunic from his dresser and tossed it to Gawain's face. The knight let out a slight groan and grasped the tunic closer to face whilst turning in the opposite direction. Merlin rolled his eyes and went to his window. He opened it fully, and the sun smacked Gawain directly on his face.

"Wha–," Gawain tried to shut his eyes tighter. To no avail, he sat up and grumbled. He sniffed and rubbed his nose. Making a smacking sound with his lips, he turned to face the now smirking manservant.

"Glad to see you're still alive."

Gawain let out a small pained groan. The knight grabbed his head. "Ahh, barely."

"You should change. You reek of mead."

"Hey, somebody's got to make it up for you," Gawain retorted. He lets out a slight hiccup. "For you and for Percival. I asked him to come to the tavern with me last night as well, but he refused saying he had night shift."

Merlin lets out a chuckle. "Well, he did."

"Uh-huh," Gawain took off his tunic and replaced it with Merlin's. "And I also _had_ duties last night… Merlin, this is not going to work." Merlin's tunic had trouble with fitting both sides of his shoulders.

"I'll grab you one of Arthur's in a bit."

"The princess?" Gawain laughed. "I'd rather wear a dress than go off and be wearing one of his." The knight took off the fresh tunic and puts on his old one. "No, even better, I'll just take a dive in the river."

"But your clothes will still smell!" Merlin called out to Gawain as the knight was making his way out the door.

"And this smell happens fancy women," Gawain smiled and waved at his friend.

Merlin rolled his eyes and waved back. He lets out a sigh, but no relief washed his thoughts away. What _did_ happen last night? What was the noise that he still failed to recall? He shook his head to try and clear his thoughts. However, it was soon interrupted by Gaius walking in. He told Merlin to add bread to his list that he needed to buy at the market. The boy nodded and took off as well to wake up the sleeping prince.

He greeted Arthur with his usual shtick, which left the prince grumbling. He laughed a bit in his head. It reminded him of what happened this morning with Gawain. The manservant did as what any servant would do in the morning. He prepared the breakfast and a fresh new pair of clothes. Moreover, he cleaned the bed and dusted a bit here and there until the prince was done with his meal. However, today was a bit different. After the usual task, they would usually go out to the training ground. Today, though, King Pellinore and Prince Tor would be visiting. It was all anyone could talk about when he arrived in the kitchen to fix Arthur's breakfast.

He heard a few giggled from the ladies in the kitchen. Later, as he was walking to Arthur's chamber, he heard a few knights were also chatting about the arrivals of the royalties. The boy wondered why they were all so excited. Two other kings and their sons visited the castle not too long ago, but there was not even a buzz of excitement such as this one.

"Merlin!" a voice broke his thoughts.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"My god, Merlin. Are you deaf now too? I said, will King Pellinore and Prince Tor arrive soon?"

"Soon?" Merlin questioned. Then, he remembered what the messenger told him. "Oh yes! Yes. They will be arriving soon, but you still have time to eat breakfast before their arrival."

"No, no time for that," Arthur got up and started to change clothes. Merlin walked over and helped him put them on. "I need you to make sure that Sterling is ready. And…"

"Hmm?"

"You did make sure he was cleaned, right?"

"O-oh, of course!"

Arthur pinched the bridge of his nose. "If he's not cleaned by the time Prince Tor arrives, I swear to you that you will muck out the stable until the next moon arrives."

Merlin eyes grew wide and quickly finished helping Arthur putting on his clothes. He grabbed the tray and zipped pass Gwen, who was kind enough to greet him. He did manage to apologize. When he arrived at the stable, he realized how much cleaning he would have to do not only of Sterling and of the stable. It would not matter if he had the horse clean as the silver platter unless he also cleaned the stable. He could already hear Gaius' voice telling him what he was about to do was irresponsible. However, he had absolutely no time. So, he did the irresponsible task. He used magic.

Satisfied with the result, he walked out and bumped into someone. He almost cried out an apology and begged to not be executed, but it was, thankfully, Lancelot. Merlin lets out a breath.

"Oh my god, I thought you were someone else."

Lancelot chuckled. "You know, you probably shouldn't be using _that_ in such broad daylight."

"Trust me," Merlin placed his hand on Lancelot's shoulder. "It _needed_ to be done."

"I do trust you."

"Wait, Lancelot," Merlin called out. "I know you're still new to being a knight and all, but I've been hearing King Pellinore and Prince Tor's name everywhere. Care to explain a bit for me, please?"

It took a bit of time, but Lancelot did not mind. In fact, he was rather happy to get a conversation with Merlin. Since his knighthood, he became busier than he expected and had time to talk to his friend. Arthur had given him the task to teach the new recruits despite being new to it himself. So, even if he had a distaste for talking about people behind his back, let alone rumors, he explained the situation.

Merlin curled his eyebrows together trying to process what Lancelot shared. Apparently, King Pellinore was a dear friend of the Pendragon family. Some would even say that they were best friends – though, it was hard for both Lancelot and Merlin to think that Uther had such a friend. Prince Tor, because of the friendship between both their fathers, was also close with Arthur. The royals of Listenoise hardly visited, but when they did, they usually brought a caravan with them for the people to enjoy, which brought excitement to all. What excited the knights, though, was the training that they were about to witness between Arthur and Tor.

"And because King Pellinore is a brilliant sword master, it is said that he would have passed the same knowledge to his son," Lancelot added.

Merlin nodded his head and Lancelot continued with a few more details. The only other important information that he gathered from the last bit was that both Arthur and Tor had an even win and lose ratio. Such that, today's spar would make one the victor. When Lancelot finished speaking, another knight called out for his name.

His face soured for a moment and had to bid goodbye to Merlin. The boy stood there for a moment wondering if what everything that Lancelot had said was true. Not that he would admit this out loud, but he has been serving Arthur for a little over three years now and has witnessed first hand that no one has yet to make a scratch on the prince. Surely, Prince Tor would lose.

* * *

 **A/N:** What did you all think? I know that it is not the most adventurous right now, but action will take place in the next chapter! Not sure how it will turn out, but it will happen. Also, for now, I will be addressing Merlin as a "boy" because he still has yet to grow as a character.

Now, for those who do not know of King Pellinore, he is, as I put in the disclaimer, a character in the Arthurian legend. He is actually a good friend of Arthur, but I decided that it would be a bit weird in this case since they do not actually meet until Arthur becomes king. So, a good friend of King Uther he has become!

Tor is also an Arthurian legend character. There a bit of dispute to who is actually his father. However, I decided to have him be King Pellinore's because Sir Thomas Malory's famous work _Le Morte d'Arthur_ had him as the son. Also, this information, I got it from Wikipedia because I needed a quick information about them. However, I did know about King Pellinore as he is a bit of an important character in the legend. So, if you want to know him a bit more, I suggest you look him up. Otherwise, more information will be revealed soon (same with Sir Tor), but they might change a bit to fit the story! :)


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Merlin. It is owned by the BBC producers, writers, director, and others. This story is for entertainment. Any characters that are not from the show are either characters from the Arthurian legends (marked by *) or my own. Please do not plagiarize my story, thank you!

 **A/N:** Quick note, action will take place here, but this story is more character driven. So, if you're into more action-packed story, this story might not be for you. However, I will have action here! What's an Arthurian legend without a few action scenes?

Side note, a bell is considered an hour. Clocks did not exist back then, but I needed to have some sort of way to tell time without ruining the Medieval setting. Happy reading!

 **Warning!** A swear word.

* * *

-Chapter 2-

Arthur lost.

It may have been an over simplification, but in Merlin's eyes he did lose. The fight was rather intense for a spar and Arthur had, technically, won it. However, Merlin saw different. Two bells ago, King Pellinore and Prince Tor had finally arrived at Camelot with. Loud music engulfed the air. There were dancers and jesters that trailed behind the royalty. Everyone greeted them with open arms and laughter. King Uther and Prince Arthur had both a large smile plastered on their face. It was rather awkward to see Uther smile so broadly. He looked at Lancelot, who was nearby, and they both looked dumbfound for a moment.

"Welcome back, King Pellinore," Uther greeted Pellinore with a firm grasp on the forearm.

"Good to be back as well, my dear friend."

"Come, you must be starving after the long ride," Uther waved his hand at the servants off to prepare a meal.

"Father," both Arthur and Tor called out. The two kings looked at each other and nodded. Merlin was unsure what just happened, but the next moment, the two princes grinned and took off. He and the other knights started following them into the training field. With Merlin lagging a bit behind, he noticed how there were already many knights gathered around. Voices filled the vast space.

"Who do you think's going to win?" one asked.

"Think it's Prince Tor."

"Oi, don't be stupid! It's obviously goin' to be Prince Arthur," said another.

With that, there were bets flying everywhere on who was going to win. Merlin tried to keep up at who had the most vote. By the end, it seemed like Prince Arthur had the most vote. His vote? Now that he has seen the physique of Tor and how they both equal in size, he had trouble casting which would win. Then, the crowd became silent. Merlin saw where everyone's eyes fell. Dead in the centre, the two princes were standing. They nodded and took their stance.

They both attacked at the same time. The sound of swords began hissing as they hit each other, and the crowd's roar filled the air. The first one that gained an upper hand was Arthur when Tor had lost his footing for moment. Arthur seized the moment and drove his sword head on to the visiting prince. Tor was quick to dodge. He spun clockwise and ended behind Arthur, who stumbled a bit from the sudden stop of his momentum.

Tor took off his boots and Arthur shook his head in response. This prompted the crowd with ooh's and aah's. They resumed the spar. Tor was now leading. There were sparks of sound flying from both swords, each one making the crowd boom even more with excitement. Merlin, though, was watching with close eyes. He took note of how Tor's feet seemed to dance. Whilst Arthur's feet, on the other hand, was marching forward. He also took notice on how each sway of Tor's sword seemed to just swat away Arthur's own strike.

However, Arthur did not fall behind in Tor's movements. He would strike at an open spot, but never a vital one. Yet, it would always be with intent. Tor was, then, given an opportunity and ripped through the air with force to the back of Arthur. Of course, being trained since at birth, Arthur never missed a beat. He was quick to draw his sword to his back, thwarting the strike.

They bought fought on and Arthur began to look more serious. Tor heaved a breath. Arthur took notice and began to attack with greater force. Nevertheless, Merlin did not miss the smirk in Tor's face. Arthur drew the sword and casted the Prince Tor's own aside. The spar had ended. Arthur had won. The crowd roared with whooping noise and adored them with claps. They also started to walk towards the centre, but Merlin could not help instead to believe that Tor was actually the winner.

"Congratulations, my friend," Tor smiled whilst trying to catch his breath.

"Likewise," Arthur nodded. They both shook forearms. Arthur pumped his fist into the air and the crowd grew louder. Merlin noticed Tor walking back to grab his boots. He followed along.

"Congratulations," Merlin acknowledged the man in front of him. The prince looked up from the ground as he was putting his boots on.

"Thank you, but I think you congratulated the wrong man," he chuckled. He stood up and looked at the boy.

"Really? I thought that you gave him the win?"

A bit taken back, Tor raised his eyebrow. "What makes you think I did such a thing?"

"You weren't clearly out of breath, but you noticed that Art–," Merlin paused. "Prince Arthur was starting to grow irritated."

Tor lets out a short laugh and shook his head. "Don't tell him?"

"And let him gloat?"

"Well, yes, I suppose," Tor eyed at the boy. "But it would rather be awkward at tonight feast if we had the Prince of Camelot sulking."

Merlin thought about it. If Arthur had lost, he would probably take the frustration out on him. He would probably have needed to clean not only his clothes, boots, but maybe the entire castle. He shivered at the thought. "Yes… you're right. Thanks."

He began to walk towards Arthur and his adoring fans.

"Boy, what's your name?" Tor asked.

"Huh? Oh right, Merlin," he answered. "My name's Merlin."

"I see," Tor nodded. He curled his index finger on his chin. "Are you perhaps coming to tonight's feast?"

"Have to. I'm Prince Arthur's manservant."

"Merlin!" a voice called out. Merlin turned around and saw Arthur beckoning him to come.

"Duty calls! Again, congratulations, my lord," Merlin bowed and dashed back to Arthur.

* * *

As the two of them made their way back to Arthur's chamber, there was a never-ending gloat from the prince. The knights were also back in their positions. Arthur took the longer route back so that he could get compliments from them. Merlin lets out a sigh each time it happened. By the eight guard they passed by, Merlin could not help but think about leaving the prince behind. Then, again, it would cause suspicion, which would draw Arthur to question him about the spar. All, then, to ultimately reveal his opinion that Prince Tor, in his mind, was the winner.

He shivered at the thought and bit his tongue in protest.

When they finally arrived in Arthur's chamber, Merlin lets out a relief. Arthur was still talking about the spar, but, at least, there was only so much to talk about by himself until he grew tired. Thankfully, he did tire out and Merlin was finally in peace again with him picking up the dirty clothes from the floor.

"My god it's hot in here!" Arthur shouted from behind the screen. "Merlin, open the window!"

Merlin rolled his eyes at the command. Surely, he could have said it nicer. Then, again, it was Arthur. When he did so, a breeze entered the room, which prompted him to remember what happened last night. He should look in Gaius' library to find information. Then, a realization hit him that he still needed to buy items at the market that the chef and Gaius wanted him to buy. He told Arthur and was allowed to go.

When he reached the market, he saw Gwen was standing in front of a flower stall. She was sniffing at the flowers. Merlin went up to her to apologize about earlier this morning.

She giggled. "It's fine, Merlin."

"You sure?"

"Really!" she nodded. "I assumed you had to finish a task that Arthur had asked you. Which, I assumed that you forgot and… Oh! I didn't mean it like that. I mean that he asked you prior and…"

Merlin lets out a laugh. "You're all right, Gwen. You weren't exactly wrong."

"Thank you," she smiled sheepishly. He helped pick out a flower that was to be used as decorations for tonight's feast. Then, they walked around to buy Merlin's list of items he needed to buy. Along the way, they talked about the caravan and the spar between Arthur and Tor. Though, it was Merlin who did most of the talking since Gwen did not have much time to go around the area to enjoy.

"He took his time to go back to his chamber," Merlin rolled his eyes. "To gloat."

"Sounds to me that you had a terrible time," Gwen noted and tried to sound sympathetic as possible but could not help but snicker.

"W-well, not exactly," Merlin stumbled. "Prince Tor seemed to be more noble than our clotpole of a prince."

Gwen bursts out with laughter. "Clotpole? That's new."

"It isn't new for him. He's been like that since at birth."

"And how would you know that?"

"The minute that he said he's been trained since birth on the art of sparring."

They continued their delightful conversation without Merlin hesitating to put in a few words of his own about his prince. Gwen too had slowly become more open and gave her fair share of comments about the prince. She described how he was like before Merlin came along. However, she also noted how much Arthur did change when he arrived.

"You mean to say he's less of an ass now than before?" Merlin sounded the least bit surprised.

"Hmm," Gwen began to think. "I would say so. Then, again, I knew Arthur's personality through Morgana. She can be quite descriptive."

"Really?" Merlin raised and eyebrow whilst a devilish smirk grew on his face.

"Oh, certainly. And, seeing as how he had you flogged the first day of your visit, I think that it confirmed it for me."

They both hollered in laughter. By the time they finished buying everything, they went back to the castle and separated to finish the rest of their duties. Merlin first stopped by the kitchen. Then, he made his way to Gaius. The physician greeted him, and Merlin gave him the bread. Before he left, he talked to Gaius about what happened last night.

The old man hummed. "I see. I do not suppose you feel ill?"

"Nope," he answered whilst shaking his head. Gaius placed his palm on Merlin's forehead.

"No fever," the physician mumbled to himself. "There doesn't seem to be anything wrong but do tell me if it comes back up again, my boy."

"I will, and, Gaius," Merlin hesitated. "Never mind."

Merlin bid him goodbye and left the room. He wanted to ask about his opinion about what happened in the woods, but it would give the old man too much trouble. Gaius was already busy from helping out several people and seemed tired. He returned to Arthur's chamber silently thinking to himself.

* * *

The rest of the afternoon ran without a hitch. Arthur was with Tor and the two seemed to enjoy talking and walking around the lower part of the citadel. Merlin wanted to help Gwen and the other servants at the castle with their duties for tonight's feast, but Arthur would have none if it and, strangely, neither did Tor.

As they wander about, Merlin could not help at seeing the small changes already that had occurred in Arthur. Before, the prince used visit the people only if it was a parade that celebrated the royal family, or if he was trying to pick a fight. The people would recognize him and bow, but they do so with plastic smiling faces. However, this time around, their faces illuminated with joy as they saw Arthur greet them. Not only that but Arthur's own visage grew gentler.

"Seems like Prince Arthur is adored by all," whispered Tor. Merlin looked at him for a moment and back at Arthur with a smile.

"Yes, yes he is," he agreed. "But he still has a long way to go before his title as a prat is removed."

This resulted in a cackle from the prince. Arthur looked up from his conversation and eyed suspiciously at Merlin. The manservant simply shrugged his shoulders. Arthur shook his head and returned to his lovely conversation with one of the children.

"Does the Arthur let you get away with calling him that?" Tor wiped away a small tear forming at the corner of his eye.

"Sometimes, but someone needs to keep his ego in check."

"I see," Tor nodded. "What about me?"

Merlin turned his head to face him. "What about you, sire?"

"Do you suppose I need my ego in check?"

Merlin hesitated. "I don't think I can make that assumption as I've only known you for less than a day, sire."

Tor, again, let out a laughter. He extended his right arm to the side and draped it around Merlin's shoulder briefly before it was released. Tor walked over to Arthur and began to talk to the citizens around him. Merlin was a bit taken back and confused at what had just occurred. He simply shrugged the thought away and continued standing whilst facing both the princes.

Whilst standing, he felt a sudden breeze slither to his ear. Then, he heard it. It was muffled a bit by all the noise, but he heard a bit of it. He looked around. No one was near enough to have whispered it. The voice and its content that he heard itched him. He wanted to hear more of it. So, he walked over to Arthur and told him he needed to buy something for Gaius. Arthur's memory failed him that Merlin already finish the duty and allowed him.

Merlin, at first, slowly walked out of the scene. When he was out of view, he dashed to the forest. He was not sure where to go, but his body somehow knew where to go. It led him further and further in the forest. The environment became denser and sunlight barely illuminate the ground.

What seemed for like a long time, he finally stopped. He took a deep breath and lets it out. He listened. Only nature's sound filled his ears. However, it did not make him stop. The sound of crickets continued.

 _Emrys…_

Merlin shivered just hearing his name. He closed his eyes and listened intensely.

 _Emrys… grave danger… must not turn back… coming with wrath… or die in his place._

Merlin shook his head. He could not completely understand what was being whispered to him even with the dead silence. He murmured to tell him more. But only one word was last uttered.

 _Saxons_.

* * *

 **A/N:** Phew! That was a ton of writing. I actually had this chapter as part of chapter one, but it would have been too long. So, I had to split it. Anyways, I hope that you enjoy the small action scene! It was difficult for me since I do not really write action. I like to watch and read about them, but it is a quite a daunting task for me. Hopefully, it will improve because I plan to write a few more in the future!

What do you all think about Tor so far? There's not much explicit information out there in terms of his personality. However, he is rather famous in the Arthurian legends as he is one of the first knights to be knighted by King Arthur. I deem him to be strong and noble. I won't reveal why because it would spoil the story. Then, again, you can probably look him up and find out why. Oh well! Still, I do hope you enjoy the story so far. I'm going a bit more Arthurian here, as one can tell by the Saxons appearing. More to reveal!


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Merlin. It is owned by the BBC producers, writers, director, and others. This story is for entertainment. Any characters that are not from the show are either characters from the Arthurian legends (marked by *) or my own. Please do not plagiarize my story, thank you!

 **A/N:** This is the last chapter that I have save! I hope you enjoy! Please read end note as well. Two small details are revealed.

* * *

-Chapter 3-

Merlin kept repeating the name. Saxons. It was a name in which he had not heard before, yet it echoed the loudest. He wanted to know more, but surely asking Arthur a second time to abandon his duty would cause questions to rise. So, he made his way to where he last saw the two princes. When he returned, the crowd had grown larger. At the centre were Arthur and Tor, who were now both reenacting the spar that took place earlier in the afternoon. Though, this time, they were using small wooden swords and were slow in their movements.

Merlin held a laughter at seeing to grown men pretending to sword fight. When they finished their epic spar, the crowd cheered. Merlin clapped along with them and both princes noticed the boy. Arthur cleared his throat and gave his sword to a young boy, whilst Tor handed it to another. The two bid the crowd goodbye and the three went back to the castle in silence.

When the arrived, Tor had to return to his father's side to speak with him.

"I'll make sure to send a messenger deliver when the feast is prepared," Arthur assured him.

"Thank you, my friend," he smiled at both of them. They watched him turn to the corner and waited until his shadow had long past.

As they were walking to Arthur's chamber, Merlin could not help but think about the rest of the information that he heard. What did it mean that he could not turn back? There seemed to also be a message about death. Was it Arthur's death?

"Merlin!" Arthur called.

Merlin was startled. "Sorry, what?"

Arthur lets out a sigh of frustration and rolled his eyes. "I swear, the longer you server me the more you become a total idiot."

"At least I wasn't born one."

Arthur stopped his pace and glared at him. Merlin raised both his arms up in surrender and both resumed their walk. "As I was saying, before your sudden fancy of going deaf, where's the item that Gaius told you he needed?"

"Right," Merlin wanted to whack his head. Idiot. "I already gave it to him."

"You mean to say, you bought whatever it was, had time to go to Gaius, who lives in the upper citadel, and make it back?" Arthur eyed him.

"Yes! That is exactly what I meant. Obviously."

"Right," Arthur extended the r in the word. He could see the boy's worry look and left it at that. Though, one day, he _will_ find out why his manservant would just not tell him the truth sometimes. He was no fool that he noticed Merlin's failure of an excuse earlier. He knew that the boy had already bought the item for Gaius. Has these years of serving him not prove that Merlin could trust him? Of course, he would not admit it out loud, but he did feel his heart squeezed.

Arthur quickened his pace, leaving Merlin behind sputtering in his defense trying to catch up with the prince's long stride.

Arriving in Arthur' chamber, the prince excused him to do other duties to prepare for the feast. This brought Merlin a chance to look more information about the Saxons. However, as he made his way to the Camelot's royal library, he noticed all the servants were bustling around the castle trying to prepare for the feast. He sighed and thought that he should at least do his part. He could always find more information after the feast.

* * *

The event arrived with a holler of the herald.

"All rise for King Uther and, his son, Prince Arthur has arrived."

The crowd of nobles stood before the Pendragons and clapped. When they reached their seats, the herald announced once more of the arrivals of royalty.

"And, with great honor, please welcome our guests from the land of Listenoise, King Pellinore and, his son, Prince Tor."

Another round of applause erupted. When both royal families sat, the crowd followed. Merlin stood next to Gwen, both holding a jug full of wine. Thankfully, Arthur had not made him wear the official servant wardrobe of Camelot. It was one of the moments where he felt like wanted to use his magic on the prince – and there were _plenty_ of other times.

Soon, instrumental music soothes the air and chattering swept over. The entertainers came to the middle and filled the room with laughter. The candles in the room seem to grow brighter as the event continued. Both kings were in the middle of their conversation. Arthur and Tor were engrossed in their own conversation as well. Merlin, on the other hand, enjoyed the view. It was a rather peaceful time in Camelot – well, as peaceful as it could with the killings of any magical creatures still occurring on occasions that made Merlin's stomach churn. Still, he could not help but think about the voices from earlier.

"Ouch!" Merlin looked at the ground a saw what had hit him. A grape. He turned his head and a snickering prince beckoned him to come over.

He slowly made his way. Arthur held his chalice in the air and Merlin began pouring in wine. The boy noticed that Tor was gestured the same. He walked over, but when he started pouring, a dash of wine spilled.

"You idiot!" Arthur hissed. "My apologize, Tor, for my manservant."

Merlin place the jug on the table and grabbed a cloth to wipe the stain off from Tor's knee. Thankfully, their fathers were engulfed in their own conversation that they did not notice his clumsiness.

"That's all right," Tor grinned. He grabbed the cloth from Merlin's hand and began to clean the stain himself.

"Sorry," Merlin apologized again. Tor flashed him a smile and it eased the boy's heart. He turned to see Arthur's expression. Arthur mouthed _later_ , which prompted Merlin to gulp. He knew he was about to receive some sort of extra work.

Other than that small fiasco, everything was smooth sailing. Pretty soon, many of the noble's words slurred as they inhaled their wines. By that time, the only ones that was still sober enough to move around were the servants. As such, more of them also began to feel leisure. They too drank a bit of the wine behind the curtains and ate the food. Merlin, on the other hand, could not do so. He was forced to stand slightly behind Arthur's seat.

As the many faces of nobles began to morph into a drunken state, King Uther ended the feast. The crowd drew their chalices up once more and, with that, the feast drew to a close. The first ones to leave were the nobles of Listenoise and Camelot. Tailing them were their servants. By the end, all that was left were both the royal families and Merlin. The other servants who had to clean up the space have still yet to be called forth.

"That was a lovely feast, my friend. Thank you," Pellinore took a slight bow.

"No, no," Uther shook his head. "Please, it is us that should be thankful that you have helped brought peace into the land."

"Come now, if it was not for your impregnatable law against magic, we would still be living in the dark ages."

They both laughed, but Merlin gulped. He had a feeling why Pellinore would be such good friends with Uther, but he did not want to admit it. So, he stood there with a small smile across his face. He tried to look at Arthur's own response but was unable to see. However, he did saw Tor's face. It was a surprise to him that the foreign prince barely wore a smile on a face. To Merlin, it almost looked like a disgust. Could it be…

"Father, we should probably retire. We have a long day tomorrow," Tor uttered.

"You're right, my boy," Pellinore agreed. "Shall we meet directly there?"

"Yes," Uther answered. He turned to face Arthur. "Don't forget to bring the scroll, Arthur."

"Yes, father," Arthur bluntly responded.

With that, the royals of Listenoise left the great hall. Uther patted Arthur's shoulder and whispered something to him. Arthur nodded and his eyebrows created a crease. Merlin tried to listen, but, to no avail, he was not able to hear a thing. Uther left the room and called in the servants to clean.

Merlin and Arthur quietly went to Arthur's chamber. No words were spoken between them. What could have possibly been spoken between the father and son that made Arthur quiet as a mouse? Still, Merlin was not to ask any question because he had other questions in his mind that needed answers first. And, he did not want to waste his escape at doing more tasks. So, he did his duty for the evening and made his way to the library.

* * *

A beam of light rammed through his eyes and Merlin woke up with a groan.

"Who's there?" someone called out. Merlin eyes quickly opened and began to quietly put away the books that was sprawled on the table. Thankfully, he made it out of the room without being spotted. However, not so thankful as well for he did not find anything about the Saxons. What or who was it?

He fled to his chamber and found Gaius to be already up. He was preparing a bottle of draught on the table. The old man looked up.

"Ah, my boy, you're just in time! Come in," Gaius finished pouring in the draught to a small container. "I need you to take this to Yven. Tell her to take it small dosage. One sip a day. No more, no less."

"Gaius, I –"

The physician spun around and started packing more herbs and bottles in his pack. "I'm sorry, my boy. I need to head off to Logres and –"

"Have you heard of the Saxons?" Merlin interrupted. The old man looked at him with wide eyes. Merlin did not want to interrupt Gaius, but the old man be stubborn when he starts talking.

Gaius abruptly stopped rummaging the herbs and bottles. "Where did you hear that?"

"Long story," Merlin answered and shook his head. Immediately, he shot his head up to meet the physician's face. "Wait, so you have heard of it. What is it? Is it a thing o-or what?"

Gaius face grew concern and seemed to be looking for any clues to his answer on Merlin's face. He lets out a sigh and brought a chair so that Merlin could sit. This gesture made the boy anxious.

"I don't know where you heard of that name. But, please, my boy, don't speak of the name outside of these walls," Gaius warned. "No one besides our war tacticians, the King, and Arthur are supposed to know. Even I only found out about it because I have a role to play."

Merlin's eyes grew wide, but before he could interrupt Gaius continued and his voice morphed into a strong whisper.

"I suppose I should start from the beginning. They are men who live in the eastern side. Not eastern side of the country, but they lived in a land to the east of Logres. Rumors has it that they are barbaric men who sought not for gold and riches, but of the people and the land itself. There are much more gruesome tales, but it's not important because tale or not they are ruthless. They will kill and take anything that gets in their way."

Gaius stood up from his own seat and resumed packing. "That's where I come in and why I must go to Logres. They are in need of another court physician to help teach the younglings so that they are prepared."

"But Gaius –"

"No, my boy," he raised his hand. "This is by order of the king and I, too, want to go. A friend of mine lives there. I would like to visit him before they reach there and…"

"I understand," Merlin looked down. "But, aren't the defense there strong?"

"Yes," the physician answered. "Yes, but they are neither strong as Camelot nor Listenoise. And they are what borders Camelot from being attacked."

This was it. This was what the conversation was about between the Pendragons that happened last night. It had to be.

Gaius finished packing. Merlin knew that the old man would be back but could not help and give him a bezoar amulet. Gaius smiled at his boy's gift and kept it close to his person by tying it around his neck. They bid each other farewell.

* * *

 **A/N:** This was a shorter chapter, I know. I thought that it was the best place to stop without being a cliff hanger. Also, a bit more Merlin and Arthur moments! Hurrah! I wanted to build a bit more into Tor's character, that's why I had him converse a lot with him. Don't fret, though! Because this is base on the BBC Merlin, there will be lots of Merlin and Arthur to come.

Anyways, two information needs to be shared. A herald is an official messenger (can be also a royal messenger). They do a lot of announcing. Basically, in modern terms, they are a host/MC. However, they also do other things such as regulating events. A bezoar is a small, harden concertation from the stomachs of certain animals. You can find more about it if you look it up. According to medieval times, it was considered good luck if you have one. So, I turned it into an amulet.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Merlin. It is owned by the BBC producers, writers, director, and others. This story is for entertainment. Any characters that are not from the show are either characters from the Arthurian legends (marked by *) or my own. Please do not plagiarize my story, thank you!

 **A/N:** Thank you so much for the new follows and favourites!

Although, this is _heavy_ on dialogue and most it relies on Arthur because there are talk about tactics and such. I will try to make it less of a bore. Also, there will be A LOT of talk about different kingdoms and locations. **If you are curious about the mapping and how it relates to modern day Great Britain., please read the end A/N**. Enjoy!

* * *

-Chapter 4-

Arthur was reading a scroll with intensity that he almost failed to notice his manservant had strolled in.

"Arthur?" Merlin called out. He ignored Merlin and proceeded to read. "Arthur… Arthur… Ar–"

" _What?_ " he asked bit too loud. He looked back only to see Merlin taking a step back and crossing his arms. "Well?"

" _Well?_ " Merlin returned.

Arthur sighed. He had no time for quarrels.

"When were you going to tell me?" Merlin asked – though, it may be better to say demanded. The boy was tapping his toe. Arthur looked him with a confused face. Then, it hit him.

"You found out."

Merlin stopped his toe tapping and lets out an exasperated sound. "That's it? Oh, y _ou found out_. Arthur, where you even going to tell me?"

Arthur rolled up the scroll and began to walk to the door. "And why should I tell you?"

Merlin was following him out of the room. "I have the right to know!"

"No, Merlin. You don't," Arthur retorted. "I'm the prince. I don't have to tell you anything."

Merlin was flabbergasted. He could not believe what he was hearing. It was a rather harsh comment when he felt like he was the one that was wronged. And of all people, he thought that Arthur would understand his feelings the most. Having only Gaius around as his guardian, he thought that Arthur would have at least told him about the old man was to journey to a foreign land – let alone a land where barbarians were about to take over.

"Well, I don't fancy Gaius trotting on to a battle ground."

Arthur stopped dead in his track and turned around to face a scowling look from his manservant. He messed up. He thought that the boy was talking about why he failed to reveal to him about the invasion. Of course, Merlin was more worried about Gaius.

"Oh," was all Arthur could say.

" _Oh?_ " Merlin questioned with heavy sarcasm.

"Look, I'm sorry that I didn't tell you. I wasn't going to tell you –"

"So, you weren't even going to tell me!"

That ticked a nerve from the prince. He swatted Merlin at the side of the head. "You idiot! Stop interrupting me. I wasn't going to tell you until _after_ the meeting."

Merlin tired to soothe his head. "What meeting?"

"Seriously?" Arthur looked at him with disbelief. "Honestly, Merlin, do you really use that brain of yours?"

Merlin tried to recall when he had heard about the meeting and pretty soon his face grew red with embarrassment. It was a few short days ago, before Prince Tor had arrived, when Arthur was summoned to the war room. It came as a surprise for both of them.

After the meeting ended, they resumed their lives. Merlin did not want to hear any of it, so he excused himself. Talking about battle tactics and killing wasn't really to his liking. If he could, he would just try to find a way to make both sides come to a compromise. Of course, not everyone agrees. He has seen the brutality of what men are capable of far too many times.

To his realization, then, it was probably the time when they talked about Gaius needing to do a journey east. He looked at Arthur, who was rolling his eyes.

"Sorry," he apologized.

"Come on."

* * *

When they arrived at the room, there were already several men standing and bickering at each other. Uther walked over to his son and dragged him to the chaos. They were all pointing at different parts of the scrolls that was sprawled out on the wooden table. All of them had their eyebrows scrunched. A few of them even looked a bit shaken. Are the tales about the Saxons actually true? Merlin decided that it would be better to assume that it was just to be safe. He loosened his neck and shoulders a bit, preparing himself to listen at everything.

Not a second longer, the Listenoise royals came in.

"Good. Everyone is here," Uther called. "Boy, you can leave."

Merlin looked around for a moment. When all eyes fell on him, he awkwardly bowed his head and started walking backwards.

"Father, I think he should stay," Arthur suggested. The prince looked at his manservant. "Gaius is his guardian. He should at least know what the physician's purpose is."

Uther hesitated for a moment. "All right. But when that is all said and done, I want you to leave at once. I don't want whatever this mess is as another gossip for the servants to spread about."

"Yes, sire," Merlin bowed his head once more. When he looked up, he saw Arthur's face looking a bit – might dare he say – apologetic. This brought a slight grin on the boy's face.

* * *

A bell. Two. Three has passed. They were all still standing and trying to figure out what to do. Merlin found out why they had to pick Gaius and felt better about the old man travelling there. Turns out, he was going to be accompanied by several knights. Uther had also long forgotten of Merlin's presence, which he took to his advantage but never tried to make it obvious he was still in the room. He was standing at the back and listening.

"If we have men stationed here –"

"Are you mad? By the time our men get there, it would be too late!" someone interrupted.

"Then do you propose we should do? Have the people die there and risk the Saxons expanding their territory?" said another.

"Why you insolence –"

"Settle down gentlemen," Uther interrupted. All of them fell into a hush. The king took a deep long breath and exhaled.

Merlin has been serving Arthur for years now and has been around Uther long enough to notice that the man looked twice his age. These couple days had not been forgiving. He couldn't blame him. Just listening for during hours they were talking, Merlin had trouble coming up with a way to solve the issue as well. He could not fathom how long it took them to come up with a resolution to have Gaius visit the nearby kingdom.

"Father, if I may," Arthur began. Uther lets his fingers fall from pinching the bridge of his nose. He lifted his hand as a cue to Arthur. "Thank you. Now, gentleman, I understand that it has been a rather long day. Although we have no time to rest, I suggest that we do."

"But, sire –"

"No," King Pellinore interjected. "I agree with Prince Arthur."

"Thank you, my lord. Let's resume this after we've all gone and have some rest. All right?" Arthur looked at the crowd of nobles. They all nodded in a hesitant approval. One by one, they all left the room until it was only the royals left.

Pellinore grabbed Uther's shoulder. "My friend, I think you should rest as well."

"No, that's won't be necessary," Uther shook his head as if to clear away his tiresome look. He rolled his shoulders and looked once more at the scrolls on the table. Pellinore sighed and the royals continued once more talking about ways to solve the issue.

Not too long, Arthur's face scrunched together. He grabbed a scroll that was hidden amongst the pile. He looked back and forth.

"Father take a look a this," he gave the scroll to the king.

"My boy," Uther grinned. He grabbed his son's shoulders and shook him with approval.

"What is it?" Tor asked. Uther shook the scroll in his hand.

"Those fools," Uther laughed. "Here, take a look."

Uther handed King Listenoise the scroll and the royal shook his head with a grin plastered on his faces. Tor own face was grinning but only ever so slightly. Merlin's curiosity grew. He wanted to know what was written. To his dismay, it was not revealed.

After talking a bit longer, they all left the room. Merlin quickly strode next to Arthur.

"Arthur…"

"No time, Merlin. Gather Gawain, Lancelot, Percival, Leon, and Elyan to my chambers," he ordered. Arthur turned his back and resumed talking to the royals.

"Y-yes, sire," Merlin ran first to Lancelot and Percival, who were training the incoming knights. Then, he found Leon along the way. Elyan was with Gwen. Finally, he made his way to the river to see if Gawain was still there. To his surprise, he found the knight to be sleeping under the shade of a tree. He had to wake him up for the second time that day. Soon, they all gathered in Arthur's chamber and were all wearing a confused expression.

Gawain was whispered to Merlin. "Do you know what we're in here for?"

"Don't know," he replied.

"Did you something, Gawain?" Leon asked.

"I most certainly did not!"

Arthur cleared his throat and the knights fell in silence. "Gentlemen, we're under attack."

"We're under attack?" Gawain exclaimed.

"No, just –" Arthur was interrupted with the sound of Gawain's sword being drawn out. Arthur sighed. "Gawain, put that down before you stab somebody with it."

Gawain withdrew his sword. "That's the purpose of a sword, princess."

Arthur rolled his eyes. "Indeed, we're under attack," Arthur resumed. "Logres is going to be under a battle with men who call themselves as Saxons."

"But Logres has yet to make peace with Camelot, sire," Elyan stated.

"Yes, but we were blessed with luck that we've made a treaty with them recently," Arthur answered. "So, a problem of theirs is a problem of ours. And this… this is not just their own problem. Several other kingdoms have fallen before those barbaric."

"How come we haven't heard of this, sire?" Leon sounded baffled. Merlin looked around and saw each other their faces grimed by the news.

"We've made it as a discrete news as possible," Arthur sighed. "We didn't want to give the people of Camelot a panic, but they're drawing too near far quicker than anticipated."

Arthur opens several scrolls in his hand and laid it out on the table. "Now, whatever is said here _must_ remain here. We still don't want the people to panic, all right?"

They all nodded, and Arthur began his long and winded explanation. Merlin got lost several times as there were a few code words that knights only knew about. However, he did understand the general description of what they were about to do. He didn't like it one bit. Somehow, Arthur had to come up with the most ridiculous and dangerous plan – which, surprised him because he thought Uther would have disagreed.

"The closest kingdom to us that hasn't been touched by the Saxons is Glouchedon," Arthur pointed on the map, north of Camelot. "It would take us a four-day ride to make it to their boarders. But we need to make it there in three. The fourth day should be saved so that we can enter further in. There's already a small group of knights stationed near the border of Camelot."

"Sir Rai's group," Leon added.

Arthur nodded in agreement. "A messenger had already sent word that they should head back and gather reinforcements. As for Tor and his men, they have already left. So, by the fourth day we reach the inner parts of Glouchedon, they should already be nearing the boarder of Branlant. They will rest for a day once they make it there as they will have traveled two nights without rest."

"Two nights?" Gawain sounded shocked. "Isn't a day's rest a bit too short, then?"

"Unfortunately, it's crucial for them to make there as early as they can. If they don't make it there on time, the Saxons could infiltrate the only land that's still secured."

"If we let it fall, then…" Lancelot pointed out.

"They would have taken all of the lower eastern kingdoms," Arthur finished Lancelot's sentence. The whole room grew silent. Arthur pointed on the lower east of Camelot. "Don't worry, though. We've planned that they have at least a night rest. As for Magance, it has yet to fall, but, truth-be-told… It's too late."

"Then, why aren't we going there instead of Glouchedon?" Elyan asked.

"Sir Barlon's group is stationed near the border there," Leon answered. He looked around the group. "They sent a messenger yesterday looking for the prince, but I had no idea it was for this. I assume that they were looking for reinforcements?"

"Exactly," Arthur answered. "I've sent a small platoon already. They will be much larger group. Only the men in this room will be going to Glouchedon."

"Shouldn't there be more of us, sire?" Elyan noted. "I'm not saying we can't do this, but with the six of us knights and Prince Tor's party, it's no army."

"Look here," Arthur pointed at another scroll. Merlin hovered over the shoulders of Lancelot to see. It was a different map. "This here is an underground tunnel in Glouchedon that was used during the Great Purge. It's the key to our operation."

"To attack?" Merlin spoke up. He almost choked at his words. He hoped it was not used to as a way for Uther's men to hide and attack his people.

"No," Arthur answered. Merlin felt relief wash his body of dread. Still, by using the tunnel, it would seem as though his people's deaths were in vain. Using the tunnel only as another means to kill more people. However, before he could interrupt, he was glad that he heard the rest of Arthur's plan. "It was a used as a hiding place by those with magic. To avoid any further deaths, it will serve the same purpose."

"Now, this tunnel heads straight to Celidoine and on to the boarder of Branlant. So, if we arrive in Glouchedon on the fourth day, we and Tor's party should make it Branlant in less than a day," Arthur pointed at the other map.

"Why aren't we going along with Prince Tor?" Lancelot asked.

"The tunnel may be straight forward cave, but last I've heard the walls can be brittle. It's much of a risk bringing our horses and a small platoon through," Arthur answered. "So, once we make there, we will meet with Tor. Then, in full force, we will attack down to Celidoine and march downwards to Logres. The platoon in Magance would be informed of the plan and would ride north to assist us from the southern half after their battle."

"And they wouldn't know what hit them," Gawain smirked. Everyone's faces grinned. Merlin, on the other hand, was a tad less then pleased with the plan. He was in awe that Arthur had become an excellent strategist both in offense and defense. However, he could not ignore the itch at the back of his head. From the voices he heard in the forest, there was going to be a moment where they would have to make a choice to turn back. Was it going to happen during this journey? If it does occur during their journey, who does he have to protect and die for?

Lancelot noticed his friend's face and took note to himself to talk to Merlin afterwards.

"Are you all with me?" Arthur asked. Everyone looked at each other as if to confirm.

"Of course," they all chorused.

* * *

 **A/N:** This is going to be a bit of a long end note, but I want to be clear about where the locations are. With that, let me say that I actually used a map of the many kingdoms of Britannia based on the Arthurian legends. Now, the map of Britannia in this fiction is not perfect as different authors of the legend have different names of locations and even different locations altogether! This was just a suggested map. Anyways, I advise you to open up a map of Great Britain, if you're unfamiliar with the cities there.

To get a better understanding of the different locations, let's start with Camelot. If we look at Southampton, the west border runs from Bournemouth to Chippenham (few kilometres east of Bristol). Oxford is the most northern boarder of Camelot and where it meets the boarder of Celidoine. Glouchedon is in the area of Bristol. Glouchedon borders Camelot and Celidoine. Basically, Oxford is the area where Camelot, Celidoine and Glouchedon all meet.

Logres is in London and runs to Watford. The distance of that, add it to all sides of London and it would be the rough size of Logres. Peterborough is at the heart of Branlant. Sheffiel is where Camiadonie is. The border of Branlant that I talked about is near Loughborough (a little south of Nottingham).

If you're confused or want me to clarify something, please let me know! It was rather difficult to explain because the Arthurian maps aren't made up of squares. You can probably find a good Arthurian map with the locations that I'm using by searching for it.

Please review!


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Merlin. It is owned by the BBC producers, writers, director, and others. This story is for entertainment. Any characters that are not from the show are either characters from the Arthurian legends (marked by *) or my own. Please do not plagiarize my story, thank you!

 **A/N:** Thank you so much for the new follow, favourite, and guest that reviewed! Although, I don't see the review, I got an email and saw your comment. I'm so happy that you enjoyed the dialogues as much as I loved writing them! Since Merlin is also infamous for their brilliant dialogues, I thought I should incorporate it as much as possible in the story. So, thank you for your lovely comment! Hopefully, it will show up on the review section for all of us to see! :D

* * *

-Chapter 5-

Not waiting a second longer, as soon as the meeting ended, Lancelot patted Merlin on the shoulder discretely. Thankfully, the boy understood and walked out of Arthur's chamber along with him. They stood just far enough from the room and waited for the rest of the knights to disperse.

"So," Lancelot began when there was no one else in sight.

"So…"

"Merlin, I saw your face," Lancelot crossed his arms. "You don't like Arthur's plan?"

Merlin hesitated. He did not want to burden his friend with anymore of his secrets. Anytime someone did, they either end up getting hurt or worse. "It's nothing."

"Merlin."

"It's just," Merlin paused trying to come up with something. "Arthur's trespassing on… you know."

He knew he was not exactly lying. His people used that place as a hideout. Now, they were going in there uninvited and, for what, to kill more people? It sickened him. Yet, if they did not do so, it would cause more innocent lives to perish.

Lancelot saw the distraught in Merlin's face and accepted the reasoning. What was he to say? Sorry, we're using the hideout that your people died in. That seemed rather rude and just a completely wrong thing to say. And, despite knowing that there was probably something more to his friend's distraught, he did not press further on the matter. He knew of the boy's stubbornness once he sets his mind to something. So, instead, he simply placed a hand on his friend's shoulder and tried his best to comfort him through the warmth touch.

The moment was brief, but it was enough to make the boy's shoulder ease.

"Thanks," Merlin grinned. Lancelot nodded his head and had to bid goodbye as he needed to prepare to part later that evening. Merlin made his way to his chamber as well and started packing even if he was not told that he would be joining.

* * *

Everyone in the party managed to finish packing early enough that the sun had yet to set. King Uther patted his son's shoulder and set them off to their journey. Their formation was more-or-less shaped like an oval. However, it was intentional as the formation made sure that all angles were covered, and that it was made to emphasize each other's strengths whilst covering up their weaknesses. Up in the front, leading the party, was Arthur. Although some would think it was because he was the prince that he ought to be placed there, but it was because he had courage to prepare to have the party rely on him to make the decisions. He carried the weight of their journey. To his right was Gawain who filled in the strength that Arthur lacked. To Arthur's left was Elyan that had the sight of an eagle, which would be helpful in informing Arthur of the dangers quickly.

Just behind Elyan was Leon. The knight had more years of combat experience than any of them. Therefore, he provided a good support for any surprised attacks and help Elyan out – who still had a long way to go in the art of combat. Behind Gawain was Percival. Although he also provided strength, he was less quick witted than the brunette knight in front of him. Nevertheless, the tall knight could rival both Gawain and Elyan as he had both strength and eyesight. Thus, he was, ironically, the communicator for the knight that fell to the back very back of the party – Lancelot. Still, this was perfect as Lancelot had worked with Percival the longest and can read the knight for any signals far quicker than anyone else. Moreover, Lancelot had proven himself to be the closest of Arthur's knight to rival him. He was perfect to be the eyes on everyone's backs.

Dead centre of it was all Merlin. Although Arthur had told him it was because he was useless in the battle, the prince would not admit that it was because he was in fear of his manservant's safety. To this day, he could still remember the time when a bandit had struck the boy's chest. The scene played in his mind for several nights, resulting in him having to open the window to let the cool air breeze his warm body. However, Arthur was also not aware that Merlin did not mind being in the centre. It made sure that he could see the prince and protect him. Consequently, since Leon and Percival, who where in either side of him, would be busy surveilling their side, they would not see him use magic. As such, leaving only Lancelot, who knows of his skills, to be the only witness – to which, he was all right with.

As for Lancelot himself, he saw no problem in having the boy in the middle. It made sure that he could easily spot his friend if any danger occurred. Indeed, his purpose as a Knight of Camelot was to protect the prince, which he would do, but he wanted to protect both Arthur and Merlin. His position granted him the best of worlds. Gawain, on the other hand, had almost begged to switch places with Lancelot. In comparison to Lancelot, he prioritized Merlin's safety more than Arthur and even his own. Being in the front did not provide the luxury of being able to see his friend's safety. However, Lancelot was able to win the argument and say that being in the front allowed Gawain to protect his friend before the attacker was even close. Realizing this, Gawain finally agreed and settled in his position.

With the formation set, they rode until there was little to no sunlight left. Merlin had started gathering sticks for the fire as the rest of the knights, thankfully, prepared everything else. Typically, they would wait until Merlin came back, but trying to make it to Glouchedon in three days would mean that this will be on the only night they were all able to sleep properly. Waiting for Merlin was not an option. On that note, Arthur had planned that in the next two nights, they would only each get a short amount of sleep and continue to ride in the night. This also meant that Merlin had to pack torches, which was a lot more difficult than one would think.

When the boy returned with a bundle of sticks, he prepared to make a pot of soup. As they began eating their meal, Gawain told his quest in finding the fairest maiden of the land.

"Well, you're not going to find her if you keep that habit of yours," Elyan amused the knight with a smirk.

"Do tell, what this so-called habit of mine is?" Gawain asked.

"Thinking that all women will fall over heels for you," he clarified.

Gawain stroke his hair back. "I do find that women tend to do that. I don't see it as a problem, but it would be difficult to find the fairest maiden if all of them fall for me."

"Not all of them has, you know," Elyan reminded him. "My sister hasn't."

"Hmm…" Gawain stroke his chin.

"D-Don't you dare! I know that look!" Elyan warned. It brought laughter on everyone. Soon, Gawain told another story until Arthur reminded them that they should sleep.

The first knight to be on night guard was Gawain. Nothing peculiar had occurred. So, the next round came and the next without any interruptions except for the few rustling sounds whenever someone turned. All too soon, dawn broke and they were on the path again.

* * *

The next two days may have been a redundant as the ones before. Nothing unusual had occurred. Dawn had just broke and they were already nearing the boarders of the Glouchedon. It was looking as though they were going to make it slightly earlier than had plan. Which is why, they were easily ambushed. One of the knights, though no one pointed finger, had not been paying close attention that an arrow had managed to discreetly shoot out from behind a tree and hit Merlin's horse. Since he typically drew the end of the stick, it was no surprise that he fell off his horse with a loud thud.

"Merlin!" Gawain and Lancelot roared. It was Gawain that jumped down from his horse first. He quickly fell to knees beside the boy and ignored the stallion galloping away with most of their supplies – particularly their only means of ration for their journey.

"Gawain!" Arthur hollered as he too jumped down from his horse. "Get in position!"

The knight checked his friend for any injuries first, which were miraculous no where to be seen, and helped him up.

"I'm fine, Gawain," Merlin assured him. The boy wasted no time and promptly stood up. Gawain nodded his head and resumed to his position. The rest of the knights prepared themselves for the ambush and encircled the boy without hesitation. However, the ambush never came. Instead, there was a tall and broad looking man that walked out from one of the trees.

"'am unarmed," the red headed man raised his arms.

This did not assuage the tension from Arthur's grip on his broadsword. In fact, it only seemed to tighten some more. The prince brought it up and aimed it at the man. "Who are you? And who shot that arrow?"

"It was my friend," he answered. "He didn't mean to."

"Is that so? Well, you'll be pleased to know that I didn't mean stabbing you with my sword," Gawain responded.

"Gawain, don't," Merlin pleaded. The knight's fury did not dissipate, but it did stop him from lashing out further.

"I apologize for harmin' yah horse. My friend is runnin' as we speak tryin/ to stop it from gettin' away," the man assured.

"The horse is not the problem. I will not ask you again, who are you and who is your friend?" Arthur warned.

"My name's Bedivere*," he answered. "The one that shot the arrow was Gareth*."

A short moment later, the man that was supposedly called Gareth came into view with the horse. It surprised Merlin that he was able to catch up with it as his horse was capable of great speed. Gareth hesitantly made his way forward with the stallion to the boy but was blocked by Elyan.

"I'll take it from here," the knight grabbed the reign and guided the horse back to Merlin's side.

After what seemed like forever, the silence between the two parties was broken and Bedivere explained the whole situation was just a misunderstanding. Apparently, their king* had warned his people of the Saxons in fear of the barbaric men drawing near their boarders. So, he had every abled body man start patrolling the area. Anyone that they spotted were to be treated as an enemy but must be assessed first before doing harm as to not provoke any of the neighboring kingdoms and start another battle. However, because neither of the two were knights, Gareth had accidentally shot first and asked questions later due to pressure.

Arthur had remained quiet the whole time and taking in every bit of information. Merlin was also draw into the conversation and tried to piece all the information together with his own. He tried to see if there were any clues that he could gather and compare it to what the voices say, but there was no information that was shared that helped him.

"Do the people of Camelot know about the situation?" Gareth asked.

"That's none of your concern," Gawain grumbled, which brought a glare from the prince.

"My apologize, your highness, we most certainly meant no harm," Bedivere eyes were apologetic enough that Gawain's eyes softened. "'nd, if we're not steppin' our boundaries, we could offer our assistance to your quest."

"Bedivere!" Gareth shockingly voiced. "The king gave us orders, we mustn't disobey"

"I know, but we're not exactly breakin' it if we journey with them," Bedivere pointed out. "'nd it wasn't as though we already disobeyed him by pursuin' further than the official patrol boarders."

"Hold on, we haven't even accepted your offer," Elyan remarked.

"Indeed," Arthur hummed.

"Don't tell me you're seriously thinking about it, sire," Leon stammered. "We may not be at war with Glouchedon, but we have made no peace with them."

Before anyone else could say anything further, Arthur spoke up. "I understand all of your concerns. Bedivere, I want to believe that _you_ mean us no harm. However, I cannot say the same for your friend and anyone else. I cannot put my knights in any danger than they already are."

With that, Bedivere smacked the back of Gareth's head. "Apologize, you idiot!"

"I-I'm sorry…" the man looked at Merlin in the eyes and lowered them. It almost made the boy laugh seeing a grown man grow meekly.

"Apology accepted," Merlin smiled at him. It caused both their shoulders to finally relax. "Arthur, I really do think that they don't mean any harm. I would have been frightened if I saw a bunch of people looking like they were about to kill anyone in their sight."

"Merlin, anything that moves in the forest frightens you," Arthur mocked, which earned a death glare from the manservant. Arthur rolled his eyes but did manage to hide a smirk.

"So, does that mean we can help?" Bedivere asked.

"I think I know a better way you can help us," Arthur commented.

* * *

They finally reached the official boarder of the kingdom when the sun was its peak. They had made it a night earlier than expected, which the knights were thankful for. They could finally manage a decent sleep and under a roof. How they were able to get in without drawing attention and get beds was all thanks to their two new companions.

Instead of finding an inn or tavern that they could stay for the night, Bedivere had gone ahead and prepared his house to be greeted by his new guests. Arthur and his party followed Gareth so that they could avoid being spotted by the others who were out paroling. When they reached the house, Merlin was impressed at the size of it. It was not grand to say the least. However, it was big enough to house all of them so that they did not have to lay on top of each other. Though, there was not enough beds for even two people. He could only guess who was going to sleep on the _only_ bed.

Gareth excused himself to grab some clothes for the knights that they could wear in disguise. When he returned, he had only enough for three of the knights to wear, the others had to wear Bedivere's. Thankfully, Merlin was already wearing his usual attire with his signature red neckerchief. Such that, there was no problem with him needing to blend in. After changing, the two new companions had to leave and get back to patrolling – otherwise, they would be caught. They bid goodbye and left Arthur's party in silence.

"I guess they're not too bad," Elyan broke the silence.

"If you think that aiming for an innocent person is not bad, then yes," Gawain stated.

"Gawain, you have to remember, they were just as frightened as we all are," Lancelot noted. "In fact, they're probably still are and even more so now that their fears were confirmed by our presence."

Gawain sighed, which seemed to be a signal that he had finally let go of his rage. "Are you sure you're all right, Merlin?"

"Never better," he grinned. The boy finished settling down all of their belongings to the side. He gave his shoulders a roll to stretch out the pain from the heaviness from both the physical weight of the items and the burden of everything else.

"Gentlemen, make sure you get a decent rest. Even though earlier today wasn't an ambush, I don't want what happened to repeat itself. Got it?" Arthur warned. All heads nodded. "Good. I'm going to go over our plan again to make sure everything's all set for tomorrow."

"I'll stay with you," Lancelot added.

"All right. Then, the rest of you, if you plan on venturing out, don't cause any trouble or scene," Arthur eyed Gawain. In return, the knight held up both of his hands in his defense. "And don't stay out too late."

The rest of the knights walked out and began conversing. Merlin had decided to stay back with Arthur and Lancelot. For one, he wanted to review the plan again. And, more importantly, he wanted to make sure that he was with Arthur at all times. He did not want to avoid the voice's warning of someone's death, which could be anyone. However, he was not going to risk it, especially if it was Arthur's life.

* * *

 **A/N:** So, in this story we have two new characters: Bedivere and Gareth. Both are Knights of the Round Table. Sir Bedivere was one of the first knights and was actually well known in the Arthurian legends, almost as much Lancelot. He played a HUGE role in the whole Battle of Camlan (aka the Last Battle). So… *wink* *wink* He _might_ play a role in the story. Sir Gareth is also well known. Funny to me is that, he is the brother of Sir Gawain. However, I wanted a twist here and not have him as his blood brother. Thus, you shall see how that relationship will play out.

Now, as for the whole "King of Glochedon" thing, for the life of me I could not find out who it was. It is a castle, mind you, but it was also a kingdom (Arthurian legends are so confusing). Apparently, Lot owned the castle, but he was King of Orkney. However, other legends say he was King of Lothian. Either way, those two places are nowhere near Glochedon. So, I'm opting to just make an OC if need be. For now, the king is anonymous. Also, again funny to me, Lot is actually the father of Gawain and Gareth. So, there's been much change to the legend because I like to make things complicated than they already are. HA! Ha… ha… *ahem*

Anyways, nothing much happened in the chapter. However, the plot thickens now that you know a little something about the new characters. Next few chapters will be a bit more intense as we get closer to the battle scene. Also, should I right from Tor's point view? What do you think?

Thank you all!


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Merlin. It is owned by the BBC producers, writers, director, and others. This story is for entertainment. Any characters that are not from the show are either characters from the Arthurian legends (marked by *) or my own. Please do not plagiarize my story, thank you!

 **PLEASE READ BOTH AUTHOR'S NOTE!**

 **A/N:** Thank you for the new favourites, follows, and review! I hope that you are all enjoying the story so far. I just want to make you all aware that there's been a slight change in chapter four in terms of the planning for war. They are slight changes, but I just want you all to be aware about the changes as the story will be based on those changes.

Side note, I accidentally kept the old summary written in chapter one instead of the new one posted on the actual summary section and spelled Bedivere's name incorrectly on chapter five. I have changed both of those errors.

Happy reading!

UPDATE [25 May 2019]: I have no idea what is happening with the site. I updated this about an hour ago and got an email of the update. Mobile is working, but in the desktop it's not. I re-uploaded this chapter in hopes that you all receive another email of an update. It's now showing up in both desktop and mobile. I'm sorry for the confusion!

* * *

-Chapter 6-

When the sun was setting, the knights who ventured out finally returned. Along with them were Bedivere and Gareth. Thankfully, they had all managed to avoid any trouble. Gawain even surprised himself that he had not fallen drunk or caused any havoc towards the tavern owner. As for the three that remained, they were the most productive of the group. Arthur and Lancelot managed to re-count their plan and adjust it on the account that they were able to make it earlier than plan. Merlin made sure everything was set for tomorrow's travel as as they were down a horse. However, there was still one important factor that needed to be taken care of.

Arthur stood up and walked Bedivere and Gareth outside.

Gawain sat down on the chair next to Lancelot and asked, "What's he up to?"

"He's going to ask a favour," Lancelot answered. There was a small shout that emitted from the door, but it quickly died down.

"Looks like one of them doesn't agree," Elyan pointed out as he shined his armour.

The door creaked open and the three men came into view. Arthur looked the knights and nodded his head. Merlin lets out a sigh of relief that he did not know he was holding in. He noticed that Gareth, in particular, looked frustrated. It was understandable. They were asking them to do something that could – no, will put them in danger if anyone found out. Still, it could help with them making it to the cave on time.

None of the other knights had asked what happened, but they knew it was taken care of. As such, dinner was a quiet one. Occasionally, there was someone clearing their throat, but everyone seemed tired. When everyone finished their meal, they all went to sleep. As predicted, Arthur was given the bed. Merlin placed himself and his blanket on the floor near the right of the bed. Leon took the opposite side. Elyan's back was against the opposite wall of the bed, but he still faced the prince. Gawain was lying down on the eastern wall of the hut, facing the only door. Lancelot was the closest knight to the door and had taken first watch. With nowhere else to sleep, Bedivere and Gareth slept in the middle of the floor.

Merlin would have slept just fine. The floor was certainly much better than sleeping on the ground. There were no random twigs that would sometimes suddenly poke and wake him up in the middle of the night. However, there was a sudden shift in the air. He kept his eyes closed but all of his senses were wide awake. It felt the same as what he had felt when he heard the voices.

He waited.

Slight snoring could be heard, but no voices penetrated through. It may as have been his imagination, but with the journey that they were embarking on, it was no time to dwell on whether it was just his mind playing tricks or not. He slowly shifted himself up on his foot. Glancing at Lancelot, who was motioning him a questioning look, he held up his index finger to his mouth. He took baby steps towards the knight.

"What are you doing?" Lancelot whispered when the boy bent closer to him.

"I have to go outside," he answered. "Trust me."

"You know I do," Lancelot nodded. Merlin smiled and proceed to make his way out the door. Outside, it was practically pitch black. The only light source that was saving him from the darkness was the moon. He looked around and tried to find a spot to sit close enough to the hut, but far enough to go unnoticed.

When he sat down, he immediately tried to listen. His eyes were closed. As time progressed, his eyebrows furrowed deeper and deeper. He almost gave up, but suddenly a crow had croaked its voice and pierced his ears. He tried to shut out the noise, but it kept getting louder. He opened his eyes and suddenly, he saw dozens of armed knights charge towards him. The boy stumbled backwards but failed to let out a scream. The armed knights quickly disappeared as fast as it came. It left the raven boy too stunned. Then, the moon's light casted itself between the trees and the forest in front of view became less obscured by the dark. It helped him bring himself back to reality.

Merlin stood up and dusted himself as he made his way back to the hut. Gratefully, Lancelot did not bother to ask him any questions and left the boy to try and sleep. However, the boy was haunted by the fierce look of one of the shadow knights that brushed through him. He could hardly see his face through the dark, but even at just a small glance of the man's eyes drew shivers through his spine.

* * *

Having hardly slept the night, Merlin woke up with the sun beaming down through the window. He opened his eyes and saw at the corner of his eyes Arthur turning to the side. The sun had slightly casted a small ray of sunlight around the prince's blonde hair, creating a golden halo around his head. His eyes wondered to the door and saw that it was Elyan that was on watch. With the knight catching his eyes, the boy got up. He stretched his body and took a deep breath before he prepared everyone breakfast.

As the smell of food engulfed the air, some of the party members painstakingly woke up. Elyan, on the other hand, was already sitting on the of the chairs and had prepared the table. The first to woke up of the group was Gawain. He stumbled his way to the table and yawned.

"You seriously woke up from the smell of food?" Elyan snorted.

"Don't question a man when he's hungry," Gawain grunted and rolled his eyes. One by one, the rest woke up. Everyone was quiet as Arthur still slept. Eventually, Merlin finished and woke the prince. When Arthur reached the table, Elyan offered his seat as he had finished his share of the meal already.

"Sire," Bedivere nodded in the prince's direction. Arthur acknowledge the greeting and nodded back. Merlin noticed Gareth trying hold his annoyance and masked on a neutral look. He gave Arthur his share of the meal and grabbed Gawain's plate to clean it.

"I'll help you," Gawain offered.

"No, let me," Gareth stood up and grabbed the plate from Merlin's hand. Gawain looked confused but brushed it off with his shoulders shrugging.

"I'll wipe it dry," Merlin grabbed the drying cloth from his shoulder and positioned himself next to the man. In the background, he could hear Bedivere, Arthur, and the knights conversing. However, his focus was to the man next to him. "Umm… I just want to say that I'm sorry."

"What do you mean?" Gareth questioned as he washed the dishes on a basin. "It's not like you could do anything."

"Not entirely," he corrected, which prompted an arched eyebrow from the man. "I could have tried to come up with a better plan than putting you and Bedivere in trouble."

"It's not like we're already in any less by housing the Prince of Camelot and his men."

Merlin chuckled. "You're right. Still, the plan could put you both in more trouble. You could still refuse if Arthur's holding you accountable because you shot my horse. I already forgave you for that."

"Thank you," Gareth grinned. "Although, that wasn't his reasoning."

"What was it then?"

The man handed him the freshly cleaned dishes. "Doesn't matter. If we're taking you through the safest route that we know, there's obviously a less chance that we're going to get caught. So, don't worry about it, Merlin."

"Oh," Merlin sounded surprised. "Okay, well… umm… thanks."

The man did a one firm path on the boy's shoulder and walked back to the table to grab the rest of the plate. They did not talk, but they eventually worked out a steady rhythm.

When everything was all set, the knights rode the same formation. The only difference was, Merlin and Leon sat on the same horse. Though, Leon was the one controlling the direction of the horse as it was his stallion. Thankfully, Merlin had been taking care of all of the knight's horses and developed some form of bond with them. He could have sat on any of them, but just as Leon himself had more experience in battle, Leon's horse had as well. It helped carried injured knights and his master on its back many times. As such, it was a better decision to choose Leon's stallion. On the other hand, Bedivere and Gareth had to walk. None of the horses were familiar with the two. However, they were in the centre of the formation. Not only was it to protect them from any attacks, but it somewhat helped them hide from other Glouchedon people just in case they do show up.

The party made their way through the forest. There was not a path for them to follow, so the formation was a bit unstable. Nevertheless, they made it through the rough part and found a clear path to follow without any injuries.

"Well, this is it," Bedivere announced. "If ye' just take this path, no one should be able to find ye' no matter where yer goin'."

"Thank you," Arthur bent down to share his hand and Gareth's.

"Ye' know, if ye' need more hands, we could always come along," Bedivere insisted. Merlin looked at Gareth to see whether he still opposed the idea. To his surprise, the red head man did not say anything.

"That won't be necessary," Arthur smiled. "I don't want to put you both in any more risks. You've already broken several rules by your king simply by housing us."

"Oh, that's nothin'," Bedivere laughed.

"Bedivere, Gareth. If you are in any danger or need a place to stay, you are always welcome in Camelot," Arthur stated.

They were about to trot off when Gareth spoke up. "There won't be a Camelot if we don't help."

"Gareth…" Bedivere placed his hand on his friend's shoulder motioning to stop him. The situation seemed completely opposite of what had happened when they first met.

"No, Bedivere," the red head pushed his friend's hand away and looked down. "I-I didn't want to say this to you, but… I overheard some of the knights talking about preparing for a battle on the northern boarders."

"T-That's just rumours!" Bedivere stuttered and tried to laugh it off. However, to Merlin's eyes, it seemed like the tall and muscular man was taking it seriously.

"It's true!" Gareth snapped. He looked at everyone and stopped when he faced Arthur.

"How can you be sure?" Leon inquired.

He turned his head to the knight's direction. "I heard the information coming from the war room when I passed by."

"More like standing by…" Bedivere corrected, which earned him a smirk from his friend.

"Well, I suppose you can say that. I knew they weren't telling us something. King Yole set out nearly every man he could to patrol the boarders. But, lately, there's been smaller and smaller amount of us on the southern side."

"So, you think they're sending them north?" Gawain asked.

"I don't think, I know," Gareth said firmly. "I know because, as Bedivere pointed out, I lingered behind the door for a bit. I overheard them saying that there's been… many causalities already. They need more men."

"If that's the case, then why have you been opposing us from the start?" Gawain probed.

Gareth sighed. "I am just as cautious as you all are and even more so now." Merlin wanted to ask what changed his mind but opted not to. "However, I don't think I could stand by and let my friends and neighbors die by some ruthless, barbaric men without doing something about it… That was why I was quick to shoot first and ask question later. I found out about it before you all came."

"That's very noble of you, Gareth," Arthur spoke up. "But–"

"With all due respect, sire, you are not our prince. You do not have the power over our course of action," Gareth asserted.

"What he's tryin' to say is, sire, we understand danger we're facin'. Although we're commoners, we've seen the way war turn even the strongest knight to…" Bedivere paused. "Still, who are we to turn our backs on 'em in time of need when they've helped give us peace?"

Arthur rolled straightened his shoulders and everyone held their breath. A small twitch at the corner of his mouth went up. "I will do my best to protect you, but if it comes down to my men or you, I will not hesitate to choose."

"That's that we can ask of ye," Bedivere grinned. Gareth nodded his head and the party resumed walking. Along the way, Merlin learned to guide Leon's horse. The knight was the only available knight to walk along with their two new party members whilst the group was still mobile. He talked to them about what the plan was. Leon shook their forearms to signify an oath not to tell anyone of the prince's plans and their knowledge to anyone else.

When they made it to the cave, those who were on horses had to stop and hop off. Merlin could tell how dark the place was without even being inside. It also looked like it was about to collapsed. He imagined that his people tried to resist capture that created the appearance of the cave. He hated to admit it, but the prat was right. If the party was any bigger, it would increase the risk of any potential danger, such as knocking something and having the whole cave collapsed on them.

"Merlin, prepare the torches," Arthur ordered. He lit all four torches. He had expected to use all four of them, but he did not account for the additionally two new people. It meant that it instead of going every other person having a torch, there would be shortage of light towards the end of the line.

"We can be in the back of the line," Gareth proposed. He looked at Merlin as if he knew exactly what his thoughts were.

"Are you sure?" Lancelot asked as he grabbed a torch from Merlin's grasp.

"'f course! We're practically trained to walk 'round in the dark," Bedivere smiled.

"Not exactly…" Gareth scratched his head. "But we've explored several caves before. So, it shouldn't be that difficult especially since we have four torches this time instead of a dying one."

"Sounds like you all had quiet an adventure," Elyan laughed.

Arthur, Leon, and Gawain grabbed the remaining torches. The horses had to be the ones closest to the light in order to avoid them being scared. They also could not ride them. It was easier to guide them that way and avoid potential spots that could cause any danger to occur. As such, Arthur and his stallion were in the front of the pack. Behind them was Elyan and his horse. Next, was Leon and his horse, followed by Percival and his. Gawain and his horse were next and behind them was Lancelot. At the end of the line were the last three without horses.

Even with the four torches lighting their path, it was still a bit of a struggle to see. The horses blocked much of the light. Thankfully, it was Bedivere that was in front them. He was a head taller than Merlin, so it was easier for him to spot the light. As such, the boy simply followed the tall shadow in front of him. Gareth offered to stand in the very back, even if Merlin had opposed.

It seemed as though the deeper they went in the cave, the darker the place became to the point that he could hardly see Bedivere's shadow.

"Humans…" a voice whispered to the right of his ear. Merlin turned his head and saw no one there.

"Who…?" another came to his left. Every time he heard a voice, he kept turning his head.

"Merlin?" Gareth asked from the back. "You okay?"

"Huh? Oh, I'm fine," he replied.

"Foe!" a raspy voice yelled to his right. Startled, he grabbed on the back Bedivere's tunic.

The sudden touch also shocked the man, but he composed himself right away. Bedivere tried to stand beside the boy as much as could with the given space, but only managed to be only slightly in front of him.

"Ye' all right, Merlin?" he asked in a hushed tone. Having someone ask him that gave Merlin the hint that no one else had heard the voices.

"I-I'm fine," he answered.

"You sure? Because…"

"Bedivere, the boy says he's fine," Gareth interrupted.

"All right, but if it makes it any better you can continue holding on," he patted Merlin's head. Immediately, the boy released his small grip from the man's tunic. However, having lost a slight touch of reality, the voices seemed to draw louder and more venomous. Then, his right hand suddenly felt warm. He looked down and saw it was the same rough hands that was washing the dishes earlier. He squeezed it a bit and the man returned the gesture. Merlin looked up and marched on with his head held a bit higher.

* * *

Any second longer, they would have all gone insane, but they finally made it out of the darkness. Two of the torches had completely exhausted its use. The other two would have died as well if Merlin had not used his magic to revive them. His eyes finally got used to the darkness and was able to make an outline of Lancelot and Gawain's dying torches. He conjured magic so that they would last longer. As great as it was that they were able to venture through with light, it also meant that the Gawain's torch had to be passed to the very front and Lancelot's had to be move up one knight.

Thankfully, Gareth's grip never his own until Merlin had stepped foot outside the darken cave. They had been walking for so long that the sun was already setting. Exhausted, almost everyone collapsed on the ground.

"Finally!" Gawain exclaimed with exasperation. There was a collective sigh of relief.

"All right, gentlemen," Arthur began. "I know that was a long journey. There's still a bit of light ahead of us. We need to keep going."

By the time it was almost pitch black as the cave, they had stopped and set up camp. They ate more their provision and slept until dawn broke and it was a new day. It took them a while to adjust their eyes to the sudden sunlight, but at least there was sun. Merlin felt renewed and stretch to the morning light.

He decided to walk with Bedivere and Gareth.

"Uhh… Gareth," he tapped the man's shoulder. "Thanks for you know…"

"It's all right, Merlin," the red head assured. "Darkness can get to even the bravest of men."

"Not sure if you're trying to ease my embarrassment or a backhand compliment to yourself," Merlin chuckled.

Bedivere had heard their conversation. "Take it as a compliment. Even I had started to grow anxious 'til ye' grabbed my tunic."

The three felt a mutual connection. Bedivere plastered a bright smile. Merlin was grinning back at the two. The corner of Gareth's mouth was slightly upturned. They all marched to their goal.

* * *

 **A/N:** Wow, that was long. I had planned to cut it off before they enter the cave, but it was a fairly short scene. Two quick things I want to address. One, it depends on the type of torch on how long it will burn. However, I've been trying to research medieval torches trying to find the max burning time length and found one that could burn for up to two hours. So, per torch that they carried was two hours each. Since all four were light up at the same time, they would all die after about two hours. Merlin used his magic to light them up again, but who knows how long they don't know.

Since time was difficult to tell back then, especially being in a cave, I'm not bothering to be specific with how long they've been in a cave. Though, I would imagine them walking for at least four to six hours because by the time they left the cave it was getting dark. Now, I know it's not realistic to make it on foot that far in less than a day. However, for the purpose of the _fictional story_ , it will do.

Now, I know none of you have mentioned anything about Merlin's actions, but I would like to emphasize something. I do not picture Merlin being meek or incapable of protecting himself. The show portrayed him, honestly, pretty strong despite his clumsiness. However, remember that he also has a soft heart for people, even towards Mordred and Morgana at first. So, I hope that helps you all understand a bit of Merlin's action. More will be revealed to clarify why in particular he's been acting… strange.

Side note, I apologize if there's not much Arthur and Merlin interaction going on here. There was a lot of pressure and tension riding on both of their backs. It just did not feel right to all of a sudden spark a witty conversation out of nowhere. Transition is key!

Anyways, I hope you enjoy the long chapter! Please let me know what you think! :D


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Merlin. It is owned by the BBC producers, writers, director, and others. This story is for entertainment. Any characters that are not from the show are either characters from the Arthurian legends (marked by *) or my own. Please do not plagiarize my story, thank you!

 **UPDATE [23 June 2019]:** Hello everyone! I forgot to mention that I will not be updating until around mid-July because I will be doing a three-week travel without bringing any electronics besides my camera. Thank you so much for understanding!

 **A/N:** Thank you so much for the guest from Venezuela that reviewed! Your review kept me going. I have not studied Spanish since my primary school years, so I kind of understood your Spanish. Still, muchas gracias por tu apoyo! (Thank you very much for your support!) :D

Also, I apologize for a super late update. I was busy doing artwork last week and caught a cold, which turned into a terrible headache. I'm feeling better, so, hopefully, I'll make it up by updating twice this week.

Anyways, I sincerely do hope that you are all enjoying it so far! If you could please follow, favourite, and/or leave a review that would be much appreciated! I would especially be grateful if you could leave a review and letting me know what you think. It helps keep me motivated.

Side note, hello to my readers from the Netherlands, Argentina, Belgium, Poland, Australia, United States, and Canada!

 **Warning!** Language and effects of a battle (blood, dead bodies, etc.)

* * *

-Chapter 7-

The plan seemed simple enough. Get through the cave and enter the boarder of Branlant. Then, they find Prince Tor's men and review the strategy before heading to south for Celidoine. Continue attacking south until they met with the platoon from Magance to attack Logres from the north and south side. Indeed. It _was_ a simple plan.

"What the hell happened here?" Gawain uttered the words out of Merlin's mouth.

Arthur did not waste a second and ordered everyone. "Spread out. Search if anyone is still alive. If any of you find Prince Tor, immediately inform me."

Without hesitation, everyone tested each of the knight's pulses. Each time one of the knights shook their heads, the air around them grew heavy. Out of the dozen that was there, only three knights alive. One of was still conscious and still responsive. Merlin quickly treated the injured yet conscious knight. As he was doing so, Arthur was called over by Leon when he found Tor. Thankfully, the prince was still alive and was simply unconscious.

"Merlin!" Arthur called him over.

"Just a second, Arthur," he answered. The young physician kept his focus on the knight in front of him.

"G-go…" the injured knight sputtered.

"It's okay," he assured. "Just tell me, where does it hurt?"

Before the injured knight was able to speak further, Lancelot jogged towards the two and bent down to the ground to face Merlin. "Go, it's Prince Tor. I'll take care of him."

Merlin nodded his head and gave instructions on what to do next before heading toward Arthur's direction. When he arrived, he checked the Prince of Listenoise's body for any signs of major injury. Besides a slight bump on the head, both him and Arthur were grateful that there were not any major injuries shown. So, the young physician treated the minor cuts. When he heard Elyan call him over, he assigned Leon to finish the treatment. He returned conscious knight from earlier and finished where Lancelot left.

Time passed by. Even if he was only treating three unconscious men, they were both in critical condition that Merlin felt like he was pulled in all directions trying to keep them stable. Luckily, Gareth offered to stay back and help.

On the other side of camp, the knights, Bedivere, and Arthur talked with Sir Coren about what happened. When there was finally a chance to walk over and hear what had happened, Merlin heard a faint grumble emit from Tor's direction. He walked over to him and kept the prince from sitting up.

"Shh… don't get up. It's too soon," he tried to usher the prince back down.

"W-what?" Tor grabbed his head. Suddenly, there was a mood change in the prince and he quickly sat up. He grabbed fist full of the boy's tunic and pinned his face to the ground.

"Merlin!" Gareth yelled. He pushed the prince off the boy. "Are you okay?"

"Ouch!" the boy grunted. He shot up his hand. A twig had just poked his palm that he felt a bit of blood fall out. He wiped it off his tunic and dusted the soil off from his face. "I'm fine! Nice to see you're still alive, sire."

"Except for this massive headache," he commented. "But thank you."

Merlin nudged on Gareth's side. The browned hair man rolled his eyes and apologized, "Sorry about that, sire."

"It's okay," Tor assured him. Merlin smiled. As he rechecked to see if any of the wounds reopened and the prince's state of mind, the ruckus caused everyone to turn their attention to their direction. Arthur welcomed the prince back to the living and had him fill in anything else that Coren may have left out at what happened.

At the end of it all, Merlin had found out that the Saxons came at them at a surprise.

"But it seemed as though they were more surprised than us," Coren chuckled before returning to a fit of cough. Percival handed him a cup of a water to which the knight refused. "I'm fine. Please, give it to Prince Tor."

"Coren, you need it more," Tor intervened. The knight gratefully drank the cup of water and Tor continued to conversation. "They didn't seem to know that were there, but it didn't stop them from slaughtering my men."

There was a pause in the air.

Arthur cleared his throat. "Let's talk more tomorrow when there's daylight. Leon, Percival, I want you both to guard the north and south side. I don't want any surprises."

"I want to help too," Bedivere offered.

"And you will, but you'll need strength," Arthur uttered. "Merlin, Gareth, gather more firewood to last the rest of the night. Just don't stray too far, okay?"

Merlin and Gareth nodded their heads and went off. By the time they came back, everything was set. As Merlin began cooking, he thought about what had happened. It did sound like the Saxons weren't supposed to be there in the first place. Still, with everything that was going on, he could not shake the feeling that it wasn't a coincidence. He carefully split the soup so that Coren, Tor, and Arthur had more. He, then, let the others finish eating their soup first just in case they wanted more before he had his share.

When everyone had their fill, they began to prepare themselves to for a short night while leaving only Merlin to finish the cleaning up. The boy looked at the pot of soup and found that there was a ladle scoop left for himself. Nevertheless, he smiled and enjoyed his meal.

When he began cleaning up, he was interrupted by a pat on the back.

"Here, let me," Gareth held out his hand and grabbed the bowl from him only to be replaced with another. The bowl was only halfway full. "Sorry, I couldn't save you any more than that."

"It more than enough. Thank you," Merlin smiled. "But, what about you?"

"I've had more than my share."

"And so have I," a voice erupted between them. The two of them turned around and saw it was Gawain holding his bowl. "I see we both had the same idea. Here, Merlin."

"G-Gawain, I don't need this much," Merlin stuttered. Gawain shoved the bowl on his other hand and gently pushed the boy aside.

The Camelot knight rolled up his sleeves and began to work with Gareth. "Say all you want but it's out of my hands now, quite literally at that. It's up to you if you want it."

"Then…" Merlin grabbed a spoon and began eating both soups until there was nothing left. Gawain and Gareth took the two bowls from his hand and finished packing.

With everything prepared for tomorrow, the three slumbered quietly through the night.

* * *

Dawn broke and the sky was illuminated once more. The sun's ray kissed their eyes awake. Several of them woke up with a slight groan. Tor's head was still a bit shaken, but it wasn't throbbing as much unlike last night. He sat up and rubbed his head. Turning his head to the side, he saw that Coren had woken up along with him.

"S-sire, are you all right?" Coren asked.

"Better, thank you," Tor smiled. "Are Ronald and Bart doing better?"

"I'm not sure, I –"

"No that's all right, I can do it," Merlin stepped forward. He bent down and guided Coren to his back. "And _you_ still need to rest. _Both_ of you."

"I'm perfectly capable," Tor retorted.

Merlin threw a twig in the prince's direction. Tor tried to grab it but missed.

"T-That wasn't fair," Tor pointed.

"Says the one who pushed me to my back," Merlin smirked. "Now, let me go check on my patients."

"I'm one of your patients!"

"Unconscious ones."

There was slight snort that escaped Coren's mouth, but it was immediately shut by Tor's playful glare. Merlin slid his pouch the front and started digging until he held up a bottle. Inside was a white petalled flower with a yellow bud sticking out in the middle. The raven-haired boy took out the cap and held the bottle under the Ronald's nose first. The Listenoise knight started coughing.

"What was that smell?" the knight groaned. Merlin ignored the question and proceeded to do the same with Bart. His reaction and question were similar to that of Ronald.

"Merlin?" Tor initiated.

"Anthemis cotula," he answered. "It's a flower."

He let the prince smell it and Tor's nose scrunched. "Smells putrid."

"What smells?" Gawain walked towards them. Merlin gave the bottle to the knight, who had the same reaction as Tor. "Remind me to never become unconscious."

"I could just punch you awake," Gareth smirked. Bedivere smack the short man's head.

"I second that," Elyan came by.

"I would think that would have an opposite effect," Lancelot chuckled. "Doing okay?"

"Could be better, but we'll live," Ronald answered for the two of them.

When everyone gathered together, Arthur began to iterate the plan. There was a slight change, but it was nothing too drastic. They were down men, but their party was still to large for the horses to carry all of them. Thus, leaving Merlin, Bedivere, Gareth, and Gawain on ground. Tor was still injured and a prince, so he took Gawain's horse. And despite Ronald and Bart experiencing only minor injuries, they still were unable to walk upright. This left with Elyan and Leon to share space on their horse for the two knights.

With that, the party moved toward their destination.

* * *

Along the way, Merlin couldn't help but noticed how despite Gawain and Gareth kept at each other's company through snide comments, they were not longer at each other's throat. He could even say that they were beginning to be friends. That his initial thoughts until Gawain grabbed Gareth's shirt but was eased by Bedivere's gentle hands. Still, there was no venom in Gawain's eyes, so it was a good progress.

They continued their journey without much trouble. They did stumble on a few Saxon men, but the parties weren't too large. However, it was beginning to be troublesome when it started to become frequent. The group's atmosphere became more intense without Arthur's warning.

"Sire," Elyan warned. Arthur held up his hand and made a fist. Everyone halted. The warm air was surrounded by the chirping of crickets. A twig snapped signaling them to move to the right. Thankfully, there was a large enough boulder to perfectly hide the horses behind. Without trying to make too much noise, the men who were on horses slid off and guided the horses behind the boulder.

Arthur signaled Merlin to stay with Bart, who was forced by Tor to stay behind. The boy wanted to protest but he knew it was no use. They were nearing the major battlefield that help take over a major portion of Celidoine. However, it was for that very reason what he wanted to join. Arthur needed all the help he can, and he could not afford to lose him. So, he tied the horses to a nearby tree but was still behind the boulder.

"Merlin, where do you think you're going?" Bart grabbed the boy's wrist.

"I need to help them."

"You can't! Arthur's your prince, you need to follow his orders."

"And as his servant, it's my duty to protect him," Merlin returned. "Isn't that why you have your sword drawn too?"

Bart's face flushed. "I'm a _knight_. It's my duty, but fine. Just stay behind me."

"You're injured."

"And you have no weapon."

Merlin grabbed the sword from his hand. "Now, I do."

"You know if you were my servant and I was feeling better, you won't get away this easily," Bart glared.

"Say what you will to sleep at night," Merlin rolled his eyes. "But you're not going to get anywhere without me. Trust me. I'm the physician here."

When Bart could no longer argue, Merlin smirked with triumph. "Now, get behind _me_."

* * *

Lancelot was the first to notice Merlin's presence. When turned his head, he saw Merlin was carrying Bart's sword with the knight himself not falling far behind his friend. The two were finally noticed by other when they stopped behind the tree.

"Merlin, I told you to stay back," Arthur whispered sharply.

"And I did," Merlin returned. "But seems like you could use the help."

"And you thought bringing an injured knight would help?" Arthur inquired.

"Sire, it's my fault, I wanted to help and –"

"There's no time to argue," Tor interrupted. Arthur nodded in agreement and the two sheepishly nodded as well. Lancelot couldn't help but agree that even if Merlin had magic to protect everyone, he knew that his priority would stop there. It would leave the boy vulnerable instead. However, his worry was interrupted with a loud cry.

In front of them, everyone in the party noticed figures passing by. Their voices were incoherent, but the sounds of clanking pierced right through.

"Are those…" Gawain paused.

The group emitted all kind of emotions. Anger. Sadness. Maybe even fear.

"Chains," Arthur finished. "They've enslaved the Celidoines."

* * *

 **A/N:** All right, I hope you enjoyed the chapter! I know not much happened this time around and that there was _a lot_ of dialogue. I needed a transition to the next scene. I also thought it was important to establish a bit more bonding.

And with the weather constantly raining, I hope to update again to improve everyone's mood! Though, it's _supposed_ to not rain some time this week. We shall see… *glares at the sky*

Please leave a review! I would like to know what you think so far! :D


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